Exploring visual journalism

trees

As part of a broader plan by Nature Conservancy to restore the pine forests of the Central Cascades so they are more resilient to wildfires and climate change, the nonprofit environmental group is cutting down trees to save the forest.

Sri Lanka’s government and environmentalists are working to protect tens of thousands of acres of mangrove forests — the seawater-tolerant trees that help protect and build landmasses, better absorb carbon from the environment mitigating effects of global warming and reducing impact of natural disasters like tsunamis. Authorities have identified about 37,000 acres of mangrove forests in Sri Lanka that are earmarked for preservation.

Volunteers with the nonprofit group Archangel Ancient Tree Archive collect genetic samples from ancient trees and clone them in a lab to be planted in the forest. The group believes the giant sequoias and coastal redwoods are blessed with some of the heartiest genetics of any trees on earth and that propagating them will help reverse climate change.

A generation after the last of the sawmills that were its economic lifeblood shut down, a vast region of Central Eastern Spain less than two hours from Madrid has become one of the biggest population deserts in Europe, rivaling parts of the Arctic. For the area’s graying inhabitants — seniors outnumber primary schoolers 4 to 1 — the daily rhythms of work and play have grown more elongated — one boy, the only boy in his village, travels 40 miles to school — or less steady — an unemployed electrician tries his hand at taxidermy to make ends meet — but beat on nonetheless, as Getty Images photographer David Ramos documents in this intimate diary.